Recommended Links

Site News

Site Search

Affiliates

Bach Cantata Listener's Guide

Cantata 17

Fourteenth Sunday after Trinity

Epistle: Galatians v. 16-24 (Walk in the Spirit)

Gospel: Luke xvii. 11-19 (The healing of the lepers)

Rating: 2+

This is a relatively short cantata (at around twenty minutes long)
in two parts. The chorus that opens the first part has a very attractive orchestral sinfonia before the choir's fugal entry. After a recitative, the first part closes with a simple soprano aria accompanied by a pair of violins. The second part opens with a recitative which then leads into the tenor aria. This is the most attractive movement in the work, apart perhaps from the opening chorus, and the introductory phrase from the violins will certainly stick in your mind for the rest of the day! After a further recitative, the cantata closes with a straightforward chorale setting.